Deputy Business Development Manager

University of Bristol; England; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 68,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Bristol is seeking a Deputy Business Development Manager to support a centralised team delivering commercial and business services across the division, contributing to an annual income target of around £3 million and leading on activities from marketing to facilities hire and events.

You will lead the Memberships Team, drive income, customer management and systems development, use BI data to inform decisions, deputise for the BD Manager at meetings, and build strong stakeholder

Qualifications

• Experience of leading, developing, or supervising teams.
• Significant experience working within business development, commercial operations, customer service, membership management, or a related area.
• Experience of identifying and implementing process improvements, with strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• The ability to interpret complex data and translate insights into clear recommendations for a range of audiences.
• Experience of using customer feedback and performance data to drive service improvements and enhance the customer experience.
• Experience of working with leisure management systems and supporting systems development, implementation, or optimisation.
• Experience of planning and facilitating workshops, focus groups, training, or stakeholder engagement activities.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence, negotiate, and promote best practice.

Responsibilities

• Lead key areas of the Business Development team's portfolio, with responsibility for income generation, customer management, and systems development.
• Identify opportunities for continuous improvement and lead initiatives that enhance service delivery, customer experience, and commercial performance.
• Lead our Memberships Team, supporting ambitious targets, overseeing membership growth and retention.
• Deputise for the Business Development Manager at meetings and key stakeholder forums and build strong relationships with internal and external partners.
• Help ensure divisional systems compliance with university policies and legislation, using BI/data to support decision making.

Skills

Team leadership

Business development

Customer service

Membership management

Process improvement

Data analysis

Stakeholder management

Workshop facilitation

Tools

Legend LMS

CoursePro

MyERP

Develop

Job description

The role

This is a key role within the Business Development Team, supporting the Business Development Manager in leading a centralised team that delivers a wide range of commercial and business services across the division.

The team plays a vital role in generating income to support and enhance the student experience, with responsibility for delivering an annual income target of approx. £3 million. It leads on business development activities including marketing and communications, facilities hire and booking management, event delivery, systems development and support, customer relationship management, financial management and administration services.

As Deputy Business Development Manager, you will help drive commercial performance, support the development of new opportunities, and ensure the effective delivery of high-quality services. Working closely with colleagues across the division, you will provide leadership, operational oversight and customer-focused support, helping teams achieve their objectives and contribute to the division's overall success.

What will you be doing?

As Deputy Business Development Manager, you will lead key areas of the Business Development team's portfolio, with responsibility for income generation, customer management, and systems development. You will identify opportunities for continuous improvement and lead initiatives that enhance service delivery, customer experience, and commercial performance.

A significant part of the role will involve leading our Memberships Team, which generates more than half of the division's annual income. You will support the team in achieving ambitious targets, oversee membership growth and retention, and work closely with Front of House colleagues to resolve escalated customer issues and ensure a consistently high-quality customer experience.

You will build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders to support the management, development, and implementation of divisional systems, ensuring compliance with university policies, procedures, and relevant legislation. Current systems include Legend Leisure Management System (including the Innovatise app), CoursePro, Develop, and MyERP.

Using business intelligence and performance data, you will provide insight and recommendations to support decision-making and drive improvements across the division. This may include analysing engagement and participation trends, membership sales performance, facility utilisation, customer behaviour, and progress against income and service delivery KPIs.

Working closely with the Business Development Manager, you will help ensure the division achieves its commercial objectives and service standards. You will contribute to strategic planning and policy development where required and provide leadership support by deputising for the Business Development Manager at meetings and key stakeholder forums.

You should apply if

• Experience of leading, developing, or supervising teams, with a commitment to supporting colleague development and delivering high-quality services.
• Significant experience working within business development, commercial operations, customer service, membership management, or a related area.
• Experience of identifying and implementing process improvements, with strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• The ability to interpret complex data and translate insights into clear recommendations for a range of audiences.
• Experience of using customer feedback and performance data to drive service improvements and enhance the customer experience.
• Experience of working with leisure management systems and supporting systems development, implementation, or optimisation.
• Experience of planning and facilitating workshops, focus groups, training, or stakeholder engagement activities.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence, negotiate, and promote best practice.